Hay-elevator



. Sheets-Sheet 1.

w. LOUDEN.

HAY B IiEV-ATOR.

No. 347,052. Patented Aug. 10, 188. .Z Z.

, INVENTORY ATTORNEY.

(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Shet 2.

W. LOUDEN.

I HAY ELEVATOR.

N0. 347,052. Patent A110 10 188?,

H H11 I'll H U Tl CPI 'LIiT' Tl I n HI g1 N. PETERS. \nlmLilhogmphlnWnhmgm']. DJZ

(No Model.)

7 s Sheets-Sheet s. v w. LOUDEN.

I A HAYYELEVATOR. 'No.- 347,052. Patented Au 10, 1886.

of Iowa, have invented certain new and use- UNITED STATES:

PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM LOUDEN, OF FAIRFIELD, IOVA.

HAY-ELEVATO R.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 347,052, dated August10, 1886.

Application filed Jannarylil, 1886. Serial No. 189,064. (No model.)

To all; whom it may concern: I

Be it known that 1, WILLIAM LOUDEN, of Fairfield, in the county ofJefferson and-State ful Improvements in Hay-Elevators; and I do herebydeclare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of theinvention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which itpertains to make and use it, reference being had to the accompanyingdrawings, which form part of this specification.

My invention relates to an improvement in hay-carriers, and is intendedas an improvement upon the patent granted to me December 18, 1883, andnumbered 290,591; and it consists in, first, the means of formingextension-supports to support the extended end of the. track inelevating the hay from the outside, and carrying it in through the endof the barn, so as to be readily attached to the rafters of any ordinarybarn without special fitting therefor, and to form braces, whennecessary, to prevent the rafters from being torn loose by the strain ofthe track; second, the combination of a door, to close the opening inthe gable end of the barn, with the carrier and its hoisting-tackle, thedoor being hinged to the barn at its lower end and provided with anextended connection, by means of which it is connected to the carrierorits hoisting-tackle, so thatthe door can be lowered or raised oropened and shut by the movement of the hoisting-tackle and the operationof the carrier on the track; third, the combination,with the track andthe carriage for moving thereon, of a hoisting-rope and acheck-rope,'which is attached to the'unlatching or trip mechanism of thefork, hay-sling, ensilage-bucket, or any other instrument that may beused to hold the material being elevated, both. ropes being attached tothe draft-animal or other motive power, so that themovement of the powerin opposite directions will elevate the load, draw it along the track,operate the trip mechanism of the holding device to discharge the load,draw the carriage back to the starting-point, and draw the fork or otherholding device down to the operator below, thus making the entireapparatus more completely automatic in all its operations than anyheretofore constructed; fourth, the combination of parts,

which turns in the lock-lever.

which will be fully described hereinafter.

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a barn or other building with all ofthe roof but the rafters removed. Fig. 2 is a detail view of the same.Fig. 3 is a perspective showing one form of the extended support for thetrack. Fig. 4 is a vertical section of a barn, showing the track hung inthe ridge of the roof and the arrangement of the ropes with the carrier.Fig. 5 is an enlarged sectional view of the carrier as constructed foran ordinary rod track. Fig. 6 is a top sectional view of the lock-lever.Fig. 7 is a crosssection of the catch-collar. Fig. Sis a perspective ofthe triple swivel-eye, Figs. 9, 10, and 11 are vertical andcross-section views of the brake-iron which fits in the end of thelock-lever. Figs. 12 and 13 are vertical and cross-section views showingthe hangers for supporting the track to the rafters.

A is the track, which is hung in the ridge of the roof, and may be madeof wood or iron, and in any desired shape.

The carrier G is provided with a suitable frame to hold the operatingparts, and which may be adapted to run upon any kind of track. In itsgeneral fiiturcs this carrier is the same as that patented to meDecember 18, 1883, No. 290,591; but in the present case the details ofits construction and its arrangement with its operating-tackle aregenerallyimproved. The swivel-eye M, to which the end of thehoistingrope is secured, is made with tripartite divisions, so that eachstrand of the rope can be vpassed through a separate division of theeye,

as shown in Fig. 5. By this means the rope will always be held in linewith the swivel, so that it will turn freely and without kinking, whichcannot always be done with an ordinary swivel-eye.

The lock-lever L is made with an opening, b, in its body, where it ispivoted to the carrierframe, and across this opening, and in front ofthe pivot-bolt e, the depressed connecting part (I crosses from one sideof the lever to the other, so as to form a loop, into which thecheck-rope G can be conveniently secured when it is desired to connectthe check-rope directly to the carrier. The opening 0 in the rear of thepivot bolt or pin a is made smaller than that in front, so as to fit theneck of the swivel-eye M, while the opening in front is large enough toadmit the head of the swivel.

To place the swivel in its place, remove the belt or pin 0, upon whichthe lever L is pivoted, pass the head of the swivel through the largeopening I), and then pass the neck of the swivel into the smalleropening, a, and replace the belt or pin 0. The swivel will now besecurely heldin its place, while it will turn freely to let kinks out ofthe rope. By this construction the swivel may be easily removed or putin its place, and is more cheaply made than if put in in the ordinaryway. The brake end of the lever L ismade forked, as shownin Fig. (l, andthe brake-iron is cast separately and fitted into the forked end of thelever, and is held in position by a suitable belt or screw. By makingthe brake iron separate from the lever it can be cheaply replaced,should it become worn, and it can also be adjusted out or in tocompensate for the wear or for the variations in the size of thehoisting-rope H or the rope-sheave 1, over which the hoistingropepasses.

By placing one or more pieces of bushing, O, of leather, or othersuitable material, between the brake N and the forked end of the lever Lthe brake can be adjusted to any desired length. The brake is made widerat the heel than at the point, and is provided with graduatedserrations, as in my former patent, No. 290,591, and their serrationsare made with varying angles, to better fit different sizes of ropes,the more obtuse angles being at the heel, and the more acute anglesbeing at the point of the brake, as shown in Fi 9.

In order to secure as close an adjustment as possible of the brake tothe hoisting-rope, the corners of the scrration may be taken oil, asshown in Fig. 10, so that as the hoisting-rope oscillates from side toside in passing over the ropeshcave 1 it will not strike against thecorners of the serrations or ribs in the V- shaped brake. As formerlymade, these scrrations in the V-shapcd brake were themselves madeV-shaped, thus presenting sharp edges and oblique sides to bite on therope, causing wear of the rope, and not holding it very securely. Toovercome this difficulty I here set the serrations or holding-webs Xobliquely on the face of the brake, make their sides approximatelyparallel to each other, and make the edges rounding, as shown in Fig. 11,which is a side elevation of the brakeiron N. By this means the rope isnot worn, because the edges are round and smooth, and the rope beingpressed in between the serrations or holding-webs X. will be securelyheld by contact against the hooking sides of the serrations. By thismeans a firm grip upon the rope is secured and the wear upon it isreduced to a minimum.

The improvements in the brake herein set forth can all be used togetherin the same brake, or only parts of them, as desired. That shown in Fig.10, whereby the serrations have more acute angles in the middle than atthe edges, is especially applicable to the serrations or webs at theheel of the brake and nearest to the ropc,while it may be omitted in theothers, if desired. The brake-iron being cast separately from the leverL makes it easier to set the serrations obliquely and with paralleledges, as shown in Fig. 11, although this may be done if the brake-leverwere cast in one solid piece.

The catch-collar K, which holds the carrier stationary on the track, ismade concave, as shown, and has a semicircular web or flange, f,extending out from the concave side, and an opening through one edge toadmit the track A into this extended flange. By this means the collarcan be made very light and at a small cost, and the track by beingclamped against this extended flange will 110] d the collar securely toits place.

Any suitable means can be used to clamp the flange f to the track A, buta preferable way is shown in the drawings. is provided with small ribsi, under which a key or wedge, 9, having a set-screw, is placed. Byturning up the set-screw against the track A the key will be pressedtight against the ribs i i, and the flange f will be securely clampedagainst thetrack. To preventthe key 1 from slipping out, smallprojections or shoulders h are formed on each end of the key and engagethe ends of the ribs i, as shown in Fig. 5, room enough being left underthe ribs i to slip the key under before the set-screw is turned up.

In Fig. 1 is shown an ordinary iron-rod track, A, extended out at theend of the barn to elevate thehay from theoutside. In order to supportthe outer end of the track, ll provide the extension-bar B, to one endof which is secured the collar-beam F, and to the other end a suitablebracket or hanger, l, to receive the rod. To the outside or end pair ofrafters I secure an angular iron, E, by bolts, nails, or other suitablefastenings, the iron E being adapted to fit the rafters, and beingperforated so that the fastenings may be driven through it at anydesired place. lhrough the horizontal part of the iron E one or morebolts are passed, as shown in Fig. 2. Ahole or holes are bored throughthe bar B at the proper places to receive this belt or bolts, which arethen screwed up tightly, and the collar-beam F, attached to the innerend of the bar B, is suitably secured to a pair of rafters in theinterior of the building. \Vhen it is necessary to thoroughlystay therafters, the bar B can be extended back into the barn as far as desired,and the intervening rafters between the iron 19 and the collar-beam Fcan all be secured to the bar B in any suitable manner, so as tothoroughly brace the rafters together, and prevent any of this case twoextension bars 18 are secured to the under side of the rafters, (one oneach side of the ridge of the roof,) and two perforated The flangeangular irons, E, are used to secure them to the outside rafters. Inplace of the bracket or hanger I, used with one extension bar, acrossbar, I, is secured to the ends of the bars 13, and a hole is boredthrough the center of this cross-bar to .receive the rod. Small falserafters may be secured to the ends of thecross bar I,-and to the uppersides of the extensionbars B, and upon these rafters a light coverin gor roof can be placed. Besides the advantage of a roof to cover theprojecting end of the track, these false rafters will help to hold thecross-bar I in its place on the ends of the extension-bars B. The bars Bcan be extended into the interior of the barn indefinitely, and besecured to every rafter, if desired. They may even be extended clearthrough the building and outat the opposite end, to support the oppositeend of the track, in the manner already described. \Vhen awooden trackis used, as in Fig. 4, the bracket or-hanger I in Fig. 1 can bedispensed with, and any suitable kind of track-hangers be attached tothe bar B. lVhen not needed to brace the rafters, the iron E and collarbeam F can be secured to either side of the rafters most convenient tothe workman, and when the bar B is otherwise secured to the interiorrafters the collar-beam F may be dispensed with. The iron E may have oneor more bracing-webs to strengthen it, as shown in Figs. 1 and 3, and bydotted lines in Fig. 2. I

By the means herein described a very substantial, cheap, andeasily-erected extensionsupport is produced, and one which will supportany kind of an elevated track.

To close up the opening in the gable end of the barn through which thehay is taken, when not in use, I hinge a door, D, at its lower end tothe barn, as shown in Fig. 1.. In order to overcome the difficulty ofopening and shutting doors hung in this way, I attach one end of a shortrope, .I, to the door near its upper end, or at any suitable place forraising and lowering it, but preferably tothe upper batten and aboutone-fourth way from the upper end. To close the door when open, and whenthe carrier and its attachment are in working order, I detach the forkor sling from thetrippulley T of the carrier, and connect the other endof the rope J to the trip-pulley in place of the fork or sling. Thehorse is then started, and the door is raised about half-way'up, asshown in Fig. 1, when the carrier is unlatched by the contact of thetrip-pulley, and runs on the track into the barn and draws the doorafter until it is closed. To open the door, all

that is necessary is to start it out, so that its gravity will draw thecarrier out on the track and latch it, when the door will descend to itsopen position, (shown'in Fig. 4,) drawing the hoisting-tackle after it,where the tackle will be in easy reach of the operator below.

In place of the rope J, a piece of chain or any other suitableconnecting device can be used, the object being to have an extendedconnection between the door and the carrier,

so as to allow sufficient elbow-room for the latching and unlatching ofthe carrier. The door being hinged at its lower end, it cannot beelevated like ordinary articles in astraight or perpendicular line tothe carrier, but must be elevated in a curved line, varying from aperpendicular to a horizontal. If the trippulley were attached-directlyto the door, as in ordinary operation, it would reach the pulley in suchan oblique position that it would fail to perform its functions. Bymeans of my extended connection between the door and the carrier thisdifficulty is overcome, and a convenient opening and closing device isproduced,whereby large and heavy doors high up in the gable ends oflarge barns can be readily opened and shut. \Vhen no trip-pulleyis usedwith the carrier, the extended connection can be made withthehoisting-tackle of the carrier in any suitable manner, so that therewill be sufficient space between the door and the tripping device thatthe horizontal draft of the door in opening and closing will notinterfere with the proper working of the latching and unlatchingdevices, as before stated.

In Fig. 4 the door D is shown as hanging down by the side of the barn,and the carrier and its attachment are fitted up ready for the operationof elevating and carrying the hay into the barn. In this figure theprojecting end of the track is bent abruptly downward, the object ofwhich will be hereinafter stated. The hoisting-rope H, after leaving thecarrier, passes-through the guiding-pulleys R, R, and to the hoistingsingle-tree S. The check or return rope G is attached to the trippinglever or mechanism of the fork or other instrument used for holding theload to be elevated. It is then passed through the guiding-pulley V, andconducted to and connected with the single-tree S, or by other meansconnected to the motive power. An adjustable stop, Q, may be placed onthe check-rope G, as shown in Fig. 4. It will be seen that'the movementof the horse in the direction of the arrow will elevate the load anddraw it into the barn on the line of the track until the stop Q on thecheck-rope G comes in contact with the pulley V, when the further draftof the horse will cause the checkrope G to trip the holding device anddischarge the load. Then the return movement of the horse will draw thecarrier back on the track to the starting-place and latch it, and thendraw the fork or holding device down to the operator below. \Vhen thetrack is horizontal, or only slightly inclined at the projecttor by thedistant location required of the pulley V, I make an abrupt decline, K,in the projecting end of the track A. WVhen this reach of the operator.

is done the pulley Y can be located much closer to the end of the barn,and the fork will be drawn down approximately perpeiulicularly to theend of the track and closer to the operator than when the track ishorizontal or only slightly inclined; but when the track has to be madehorizontahto suit the structure of the barn, or for other reasons, orwhen the barn is very high, the fork will necessarily be drawn too faraway from the operator, even if the projecting end of the track is tosome extent abruptly inclined. To overcome these difficulties and tomake my invention practical under all circumstances, I place a smallpulley or ring, U, on the chccleropc G between the pulley V and thecarrier, and to this pulley or ring L, lconncct a small cord, \V, whichcan be secured within easy reach of the operator below. The check-rope(.i' will pass freely through the small pulley or ring U, and the forkcan always be drawn to the operator, as well as the check-rope (i,should he wish to handle it to discharge the load, instead of using thestop Q, or for any other purpose.

In Fig. 4: the eonnectingmpe .T of the door is shown utilized as aconnection of the cord \V while it is not otherwise in use. ()f course,this cannot always be done, as this connection will sometimes be in theway of the load to he elevated, in which case the cord \V can beotherwise connected, so as to be within easy Substamtiallythe samearrangement of the hoisting-rope if and the check-rope G can be usedwhen the hay is elevated in the center of the barn.

If the driveway in the center of the barn is wide enough in proportionto the height of the track, or there are no obsti'uctions in the way thetrack may be made horizontal throughout. Ifnot,thcdiflicultymaybcovencome by abruptly inclining the part of the track over the drive my, soas to give the check-rope G the proper draw on the carrier to bring itback to the latching-place, which in this case will be at the center ofthe inclined part of the track. If dcsircd,thc st op Q on the chccleropemay be dispensed with, and the return draft of the horse be dependedupon to operate the tripping mechanism of the holding device and todischarge the load; also, additional guiding-pulleys may be used toconduct the ropes around intervening obstacles without departing fromthe spirit of my invention.

Very frequently in constructing an elevated track for hay-carriers it isnecessary to support it at intermediate points, and especially is thisthe case when the track is constructed of wood, as in Fig. -.l. \Vhensuch supports are necessary,lsecure additional collar-beams F to theproper rafters, as shown in Fig. 1;. I bore a hole through the middle ofeach collar-beam and pass a hooked bolt, r,up through v the hole, sothat the burr will be on top and the hooked end below. l also bore twoconntersunk holes in the lower edge of the collarmethod of attaching theswivel-eye.

beam, one on each side of the main hole, so that the hook can be turnedto either side and have a countersink opposite to secure the point ofthe hook. I then make flaring mortiscs in the center of the track, asshown in Fig. 13, to correspond with the collar-beams on the rafters,and insert in each mortise a link, Z, and drive a pin, q, through thetrack crosswise to hold the link from coming out. If then hookthe linkover the hooked end of the bolt 1' in the collar-beam and screw the burrup tight, drawing the point of the hook well in the countersinkopposite. By this means a very secure and convenient support isproduced, which will hold the track positively to its place and preventit from spring ing either upward or downward, while at the same time thetrack will be perfectly flexible, and free .to move sidewisc orendwisc,provided it is not rigidly attached at the ends, so as torelieve the rafters of the greater part of the strain incidentto theoperation of the carrier. When a wooden track isuscddhe hooked bolt 1'.link I, and pin q can be used to attach the track to the extension-barii, in which case the hooked bolt 2' will be secured directly to the bar1 \Vhen the track is thin, and the mortise goes clear through it, thelink Z, being closed or made solid at the middle, so as to form a holeat its lower end for the pin (1 to pass through, will still hold thetrack from springing up and causing the unloaded can rier, as it passesalong the track, from catching against the collar-beams or rafters, asis frequently the case with other mack-hangers, thereby permitting thetrack to he hung much closer up in the peak of the barn than if theordinary hang-hooks were used. if desired, the upper part of the link!can be formed into a hook, and be secured tothc building in any suitablemanner.

The novel featuresaiul combinations herein shown and described inconnection with each other, while preferably intended to be used witheach other to form one complete hay-elevating device, that can beadapted to the varied situations in which said devices have to be used,can also be used separately and indepcndently of each other, withoutlimiting the scope of the individual parts of which my hay elevator andcarrier is composed. For instance, the triple swivel-eye M can beconnected to the carrier in any suitable manner without affecting thevalue of the triple eye itself, and,vice versa, any kind of a swivel-eyecan be attached to the lever L in the manner shown without affecting thevalue of that ltis the same with other parts not claimed in combinationwith each other.

.liaving thus described my invention, I claim- 1. In hay elevators andcarriers, a swivelcye having tripartite divisions, in eombination with athree-strand hoisting-rope, substantially as shown and described.

2. The combination of the pivoted lever IIO L, having an opening in itsbody, and a depressed connecting part, (1, with the swiveleye, thecarriage, the track, the ropes G H, and the pulleys P T,substantially asdescribed.

3. A pivoted lever, L, having a large opening on one side of the pivotand a small opening on the other side, in combination with a suitableswivel-eye, rope H, carriage, the pulleys, and track, substantially asset forth.

4. The combination of the brake-lever L, the brake-iron N, adapted tofit in the end of the lever, and the bushing O, the rope H, the pulleys,and the carriage, substantially for the purpose set forth. 1

5. A brake-lever, L, having the V-shaped serrated brake N, incombination with the hoisting-rope H and rope-sheave P, the angles ofthe serrations being more acute at the point than at the heel of thebrake, substantially as shown.

6. A brake -leve'r, L, having aV-shaped serrated brake, in combinationwith the hoisting-rope H and rope-sheave P, the serration being setobliquely on the face of the brake, and having approximately parallelsides and rounded edges, substantially as shown.

7. A catch-collar, K, made concave on one side,with an opening in oneedge, and with an extended web or flange, f, in combination with aclamping device to clamp the web or flange f to the track, substantiallyas described.

8. The catch-collar K, having an extended web or flange, f, and anopening in one edge, in combination with the wedge or key having aset-screw and the ribs 2' 2', substantially as set forth.

9. The combination of an elevated track, a carriage for moving thereon,a hoisting-tackle to operate the carriage, and a door, D, the door Dbeing hinged at its lower end to the barn, and being connected to thecarriage on the hoisting-tackle by means of an extended connection,substantially as. shown and described.

10. The'eombination of an elevated track, a carriage for moving thereon,a hoisting-rope, H, trip-pulleys T, door D, hinged at its lower end, andthe connecting-rope J, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

11. The combination of an elevated track or the tripping mechanism ofthe holding device and at the other end to the operatingpower, so thatthe application of the power in opposite directions will elevatetheload, draw the carriage along the track, operate the tripping mechanismto discharge the load, return the carriage to the starting-point, andlatch it to the track,and then draw the fork or holding device to theoperator below, substantially as set forth.

12. The combination of the track, the carriage for moving thereon, thehoisting-rope, suitable guiding-pulleys, the check-rope attached to thetripping mechanism of the fork or holding device, both ropes beingconnected to the operating-power,and the stop Q, placed upon thechccloropeffor the purpose set forth.

13. The combination of the elevated track having the abrupt incline A,the carriage for moving thereon, 'the hoisting rope, suitableguiding-pulleys, and the check or return rope G, which is attached atone end to the fork or holding device and at the other end to theoperating-power, so as to return the carrier to the starting-point anddraw the fork or holding device down approximately perpendicular to theinclined part of the track, substantially as described. I

14. The combination of the check-rope G,

attached at one end to the hoisting-tackle of 8 5 the carrier and at theother to the operatingpower, with the cord V, to draw the checkropewithinreach of the operator, substantially as specified.

15. The combination of the carrier 0, checkrope G, guiding-pulley V,cord \V, and the pulley or ring U, adapted to run on the checkrope G,substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

XVILLI AM LOUDEN. \Vitnesses:

GEo. O. FRY, WM. M. READ.

